First Steps In Fatherhood
by Giton
Summary: Crais learns that fatherhood is not so easy


_Disclaimer on punctuation and spacing: Fanfiction.net seems to take some out!_  
  
_Disclaimer: "Farscape" is a protected trademark and I'm just borrowing the characters. I promise to give them back once I've used them, hopefully more or less intact._  
_Now that I have given Crais a family, we can have some more fun. How about budding Fatherhood? I am sure Crais will "appreciate" that. Set in the time before they meet up with the people from Moya in To The Rescue._  
  
Title: First Steps In Fatherhood  
Author: GitonCrais  
Rating: General/Humour  
Spoilers: Season 5  
Keywords: Crais and his new family  
Summary: Crais learns that fatherhood is not so easy  
  
**First Steps In Fatherhood**  
By GitonCrais  
  
Crais was on the Command Bridge when Lyane's cry of pain shot through the link.  
  
He blinked his eyes and shook his head. It was obvious that it hadn't been life threatening or too painful when he could hear her curse but still...  
  
He quickly left Command in search of his mate. Through Talyn's link it was not difficult to find her and he entered the Galley.  
  
She was sitting on the floor near the table, nursing her arm. A scowl of annoyance was on her face. He helped her up.  
  
"What happened," he asked.  
  
"Something quite stupid," she muttered, "When I was cutting the Fanoosian leaves earlier for the evening repast, a small piece had dropped on the floor and I hadn't noticed it. I slipped on it and bumped my arm on the table. I'm sure it was nothing."  
  
"Let me be the judge of that," replied Crais. He examined her arm and when she let out a yelp when he moved it, he sighed, "Hopefully it is just a sprain."  
  
He took her to Medical and treated her arm. Luckily it was no more than a sprain and although it could be fixed easily, she might be in discomfort for some days.  
  
She kissed him gently on the mouth, "Healer Crais to the rescue."  
  
He smiled, "I believe that you can be quite accident-prone at times, my Sh'lee."  
  
She kissed him lightly on the cheek when he used the endearment.  
  
"You keep that arm comfortable for a little while," said Crais, "you should be all right in a couple of days."  
  
Lyane smiled gently, "And who's going to look after the boys?"  
  
Crais looked a little nonplussed, "What about the boys?"  
  
Lyane laughed, "They still need to be changed and fed."  
  
Crais looked a bit sheepishly, "I can do that, it can't be that difficult."  
  
"I will guide you through the process."  
  
"With your guidance it should be easy," said Crais.

.

It was indeed easier said than done. Halfway into the process Crais was wondering if trying to work out the speed one had to travel through StarBurst without the help of the databanks would be easier than changing a diaper.

.

Lyane sat in the chair near the dresser and instructed Crais how to proceed.  
  
Tauvo was first.  
  
Crais took Tauvo out of the cradle, holding him gently. The baby almost disappeared in the crook of his arm. For a brief spell Crais' stern features softened when he looked down at his son.  
  
The boy smiled happily at his father, reached up his tiny arms and tugged at the goatee that presented such an inviting target. The bristling touch was a source of glee for the happy baby and it gurgled merrily at the prickly sensation, his little feet were kicking in the air but Crais had a firm grip on him. As per Lyane's instruction, Crais placed Tauvo carefully on the dresser, making sure he couldn't roll off it, so far so good.  
  
Tauvo lay quietly, somehow aware that he was going to be made comfortable. His big dark eyes stared up into his father's dark eyes. His little face changed rapidly from seriousness, to curiosity and then to complete innocence.  
  
Crais smiled with love at his son.  
  
This changed when Crais undid the diaper. His nose wrinkled at the smell. It was one thing he hadn't been able to get used to after the twins were born. Even for a Sebacean his senses had been more developed and he always had a keen sense of smell. To him, the smells of his sons were strong at times but it had been contained in their diapers when Lyane normally passed them to him to hold. Now it wasn't. He swallowed deeply and felt slightly nauseous.  
  
"Lyane, can you..." he turned to face her and saw how she cradled her arm with a painful expression on her face. He turned back to Tauvo, "No, I didn't think you could."  
  
Had Crais known that the pained expression had nothing to do with her arm and all with trying to keep the mirth from showing on her face, he might have wondered. Talyn helped Lyane to keep her laughter from Crais' mind.

.

Crais' nose twitched in a reflective reaction. He started to feel sick but persevered.  
  
Somehow he managed to take the diaper away without spilling the contents.  
  
Lyane's thoughts came through the link to instruct him on wiping the baby's bottom and how to clean it. He wondered briefly why she used the link rather than speech.  
  
When Tauvo was cleaned he looked quite happy and before Crais could smile back, a straight stream of golden liquid hit him in the face. Crais spluttered and his eyes blinked rapidly, then he took a deep breath. His free hand reached for the towel and dried his face. He kept his annoyance in check. Tauvo gurgled happily and trampled wildly with his feet. Crais cleaned Tauvo's skin where, remarkably, little had fallen.  
  
Crais took hold of the wildly moving feet and tried to hold them as gently as possible. The tiny feet disappeared easily in his hand and he had to find a balance of not crushing them in his big hand and still keep a firm grip on them. It only made Tauvo renew his efforts to escape his father's hand.  
  
Finally he managed to trap both feet, which encouraged Tauvo to squirm even more.  
  
He reached over for the powder Lyane had told him to use on Tauvo's bottom. At the same time as he picked it up, one of Tauvo's feet dislodged from his hand.  
  
In his haste to get hold of Tauvo's foot, he set down the powder container too quickly, grasped for Tauvo's foot and saw powder settling on his tunic. He frowned.  
  
Crais grew weary with the game. For a moment Tauvo lay still. His big round eyes looked at Crais, an innocent pout on his mouth produced happy sounds.  
  
Crais lifted the feet and brought the container to Tauvo's bottom.  
  
One sharp kick and Tauvo's foot was loose again. The resulting kick hit the container of powder in Crais' hand. The powdery cloud settled on his face and produced a sneezing fit. The powder made his black hair and beard resemble grey now and Crais blinked rapidly in an attempt to clear most of it from his eyes. Tauvo laughed merrily and moved his little fists wildly.  
  
Crais was more determined than ever and at the third try he managed to accomplish the task.

.

Lyane did her best not to laugh out loud at the spectacle played out in front of her. Talyn had changed the angle to give her a full frontal view of Crais. The stern features of her mate were flecked and covered with powder, some of it had settled on his tunic, while his hair curled wildly around his face. When the powder had exploded in Crais' face, she had to stifle a bout of laughter in the pillow.  
  
Talyn went to full privacy mode to stop Crais from hearing their mirth.  
  
Fortunately, Crais was so focused on Tauvo that he hadn't noticed he was on his own in his mind.

.  
Next came the placement of the diaper and he wondered who had thought up this way of covering a child. The shape didn't make any sense. How would a triangle cover it?  
  
Too high and there was hardly any diaper left to cover the baby's bottom. Too low and it would come off again. Plotting StarBurst to an unknown destination was easy compared to the placement of the diaper. The baby's happy bouncing and kicking of the feet didn't help to keep it in place. A determined scowl appeared on Crais' face. He would not give in!  
  
He had managed to keep everything in place and to fold it around Tauvo's middle. Lyane had not given him any instructions on how to keep it together. He looked over at his mate for advice and now realised why she had been unable to give him any further instructions.  
  
What he saw struck him with annoyance and horror that he might have to work this out for himself. Silent mirth was wracking her shoulders. Her face was well buried in the pillow but there was no mistake in her laughter. She could still see very well through Talyn's sensors.  
  
Crais looked back at Tauvo. He took a deep breath and tried to remember what the placement of the diaper had looked like before he took it off. He could normally remember the strangest equations, names of people long forgotten, planets which no longer existed but try as he might, he couldn't remember the way the diaper had been held together! Panic set in.  
  
He tried tying the three corners together. That didn't seem to be the practical solution. Tauvo wriggled free almost as soon as he tied the first two corners together.  
  
He put the diaper to closer inspections, working it out logically and noticed a pattern of fasteners. Ah! That would be easier, just position the fasteners!  
  
It was an exercise of trial and error. Two together, one left out. He tried all the sequences. After a long struggle the pieces finally rested together; without any bits missing, no bumpy spots and Tauvo's body safely covered. A satisfied smile settled on Crais' mouth when he had accomplished that.  
  
The last hurdle presented itself when he had to put the small trousers over Tauvo and the diaper. Crais growled in utter frustration when Tauvo had different ideas of getting dressed.  
  
As soon as he had one leg in and proceeded to the next, Tauvo would wriggle his leg out of the first trouser leg and was triumphantly kicking the now bare leg in the air.  
  
Having covered the one leg, the other would find itself mysteriously in the same trouser leg.  
  
This game continued for a few more microns and Crais' growl was audible. Had Tauvo been an inanimate object, he would have been thrown straight across the room by now.

.  
At last it was done and Crais carried Tauvo over to Lyane.  
  
"You have to do this all the time," Crais asked in exhaustion and frustration.  
  
"Yes," Lyane replied in a tight voice, "and there is still another to be done as well."  
  
Crais remembered Tyrek and his face fell.  
  
Lyane couldn't contain her mirth any longer as she looked up at her mate.  
  
The impeccable Captain Bialar Crais was far removed from impeccable now. His hair flew wildly around his face. White powder clung to his hair and beard and flecked his face and the front of his tunic. One of his eyes had reddened where the powder had hit and his face looked like thunder.  
  
She buried her face in Tauvo's shoulder, while sobs of laughter were shaking her body. Tauvo gurgled happily and Crais could now hear Talyn's laughter in his mind too.  
  
"Talyn, I hope you made a vid recording of this," Lyane nearly rolled off the bed with uncontrollable laughter and Crais took Tauvo away from her.  
  
"No, Talyn you haven't," Crais gave the harsh command, his face reddening in humiliation.  
  
Talyn chuckled By the way, Crais, you have something on your face  
  
Talyn and Lyane found the comment hilarious and both erupted into another hysterical fit of laughter.

.

Crais found it in no way amusing. Then again, he hadn't seen his appearance, yet.  
  
He looked down at the baby in his arm.  
  
First Tauvo looked at him seriously. His big brown eyes looked at his father's flecked face. His mouth pouted as if he was about to ask a question. His tiny hands fluttered about and came to rest in Crais' goatee. For a moment he touched it with a serious expression. Then his little face broke into a happy smile and he gurgled with laughter.  
  
A smile softened Crais' stern face and when Tauvo grasped his finger to play with, Crais asked softly, "So, even you found it amusing?"  
  
Lyane finally stopped laughing and held out her arm, "Here let me take Tauvo out of your hands. I can hold him."  
  
"I can..." Crais started.  
  
"There is still Tyrek," said Lyane with a covert smile.  
  
Crais looked at her in horror. How could he have forgotten his other son? Worse... he had to do it all over again!  
  
Lyane bit her bottom lip to keep herself from laughing when she saw the terror on Crais' face. It was obvious from his expression that he would rather face ten heavily armoured Peacekeepers with nothing more than a paring knife than go through the whole experience of changing a diaper again.

.  
Changing diapers on Tyrek was easy compared to the struggle he had had with Tauvo, now that he knew what he could expect. And after a quick trip to the refresher and having cleaned himself up too, he walked into the room in his shirtsleeves and trousers and lay on the bed next to his mate. The two children were lying happily between them.  
  
"You weren't serious about the vid chip, were you," asked Crais hesitantly.  
  
Lyane smiled, "Later you will find it amusing too."  
  
"I doubt that," replied Crais seriously, fearful that someone else might see it.  
  
Lyane touched the side of his face gently, "You will, my beloved. You were wonderful. I know it is not easy but you came through superbly." She looked down at their sons, "See, they are both happy now."  
  
Crais looked down at Tauvo and Tyrek. Two happy smiling faces were looking back at him.  
  
He looked at his mate and a smile softened his features, "They are beautiful, as their mother."  
  
She grinned and placed a gently kiss on his cheek, "Like their father. They resemble you."  
  
Crais looked down. Both children had inherited the black hair of their parents, the dark brown eyes. Tyrek had a smile on his face, he was always happy, Tauvo, the firstborn, tended to look serious now and again.  
  
Crais looked back at Lyane, "They resemble us, my Sh'lee."

.  
Talyn "smiled". He was happy with his two new brothers, even if they were only brothers in spirit. They would provide them all with laughter, he was sure of that.  
  
He moved gently to their new destination.  
  
**The End**


End file.
